A local entrepreneur whose company is helping job seekers get back into work, is expanding his business thanks to a growth programme being delivered by The University of Nottingham’s Haydn Green Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

Ian Grewcock, co-director of My Jobs Place, is one of 30 business people in Nottingham who are taking part in Growth 100, a Nottingham City Council initiative financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

Through a series of 12 one day practical sessions, Growth 100 is helping business owners and directors, like Ian Grewcock, to exploit new business opportunities and develop the skills to achieve business expansion.

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Providing innovative recruitment solutionsIn 2011, Ian Grewcock and co-directors Tim Richards and Paul Knight, launched ‘My Jobs Place’ after identifying a gap in the recruitment market. My Jobs place is an innovative coaching and recruitment solutions company that uses software and video to help job seekers create on-line digital profiles to increase their employability skills and ultimately put them into work. The business has since expanded into contracts with further and higher education institutions across England as well as relationships with Job Centre Plus.

Ian and his colleagues visit Job Centre Plus sites and work with job seekers on a one to one basis develop video profiles and provide the candidates with interview tips and general employment advice. This strengthening relationship with Job Centre Plus is helping Ian and his partners to support over 1,000 job seekers.

Providing practical advice Ian said: “We know what job opportunities there are in Nottingham so that when we meet with job seekers we can develop digital profiles that match them to the available local jobs. In a way, we’re a bit like a cross between Facebook and online dating sites, but purely for those looking for work.

“Unlike the majority of job sites, My Job Place offers support that goes above and beyond the standard service offered by the recruitment market. For instance, we provide a drop in service for two days a week at Job Centre Plus sites in Nottingham, to provide practical advice to job seekers on how to get a job.”

If the applicants require further assistance they are referred to a course with an approved training company. My Job Place provides additional training on application writing, developing digital profiles, interviews and employment, promoting the job seekers and providing them with a complete service.

Refining managerial and entrepreneurial skillsIan believes that the Growth 100 programme has been instrumental in the recent growth of his company and has helped to refine his managerial and entrepreneurial skills. “When your business is small and you only have two or three managers, there can be gaps in your management skill set,” said Ian. “The session we spent defining our management style was really enlightening for me. The personalised approach of this workshop enabled me to look at how I manage my team and identify what I need to improve on.”

My Jobs Place is also expanding into Derby and Birmingham and looking to expand nationally over the next five years. Ian believes that Growth 100 has given him the confidence that the business is on the right track. He said: “No matter how good you are at business, third party confirmation that you are doing the right thing is always helpful."

Developing a competitive edge“I’d definitely recommend the Growth 100 programme to other small and medium sized businesses” added Ian. “The aim is simply to help businesses like mine to grow, which in turn will hopefully give us the competitive edge we need to be successful and benefit the local economy.”

Professor Simon Mosey, from Nottingham University Business School, added: “Ian’s positive experience on Growth 100 is echoed by the other participants on the programme. The business people who have participated in Growth 100 have found it extremely useful. In addition to the more formal training elements, they have also been sharing ideas and providing help and advice to each other. As a result of their experiences, they have gone back to their businesses and are now trying innovative new ideas, which is very exciting to see.”

For more information about this press release, contact Kelly Cookson, Marketing Officer at the Haydn Green Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, on 0115 846 6860 or email kelly.cookson@nottingham.ac.uk; or Nick King, Marketing Projects Manager, Business Engagement and Innovation Services, University of Nottingham. Tel: 0115 82 32184, or email nicholas.king@nottingham.ac.uk

Notes to editors: The University of Nottingham has 42,000 students and is ‘the nearest Britain has to a truly global university, with campuses in China and Malaysia modelled on a headquarters that is among the most attractive in Britain’ (Times Good University Guide 2014). It is also one of the most popular universities among graduate employers, one of the world’s greenest universities, and winner of the Times Higher Education Award for ‘Outstanding Contribution to Sustainable Development’. It is ranked in the World’s Top 75 universities by the QS World University Rankings.

More than 90 per cent of research at The University of Nottingham is of international quality, according to the most recent Research Assessment Exercise. The University aims to be recognised around the world for its signature contributions, especially in global food security, energy & sustainability, and health. The University won a Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education for its research into global food security.

About the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF)The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) Programme, which runs from 2007-13, is one of the funds established by the European Commission to help local areas stimulate their economic development.

The ERDF objectives for England are:

• Promoting innovation and knowledge transfer

• Stimulating enterprise and supporting successful business

• Ensuring sustainable development, production and consumption

• Building sustainable communities

• Improving accessibility and connectivity (for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly only – as part of their Convergence Programme).

The programme is delivered and overseen by the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG).